Werewolf Suspense (Book 4): Outage 4 (The Reckoning) by T.W. Piperbrook Read Free Book Online

each other as they watched the bus tear off across the parking lot. Katherine stood several feet behind them, sobbing. The bus rolled out of sight.
    Sally stopped screaming. Despite her silence, Abraham heard the yells of other survivors in the adjacent rooms, picking up where she left off. He pictured other faces pressed against hospital windows, watching the scene outside in terror.  
    Abraham tried to figure out their next move. The grisly death of the police officer was a reminder that they were next. The walls and doors of the hospital were only temporary barriers.
    "Did the others get away…?" Katherine asked, her voice cracking.
    "Yes, they did, honey," Abraham reassured her.
    The words did little to restore the girl's confidence. The beasts would either catch up to the school bus or they wouldn't, but that wouldn't stop them from returning to the hospital.  
    "I wish Silas were here," Katherine whispered, her gaze wandering to the door. "And Tom."
    "I'm sure they'll be back soon," Abraham said. He held onto Katherine, thinking of his own grandchildren, and of other people who might be out in the cold, stripped of their relatives and places of warmth.  
    It could be worse, he tried telling himself.
    Still, he wasn't sure how.
    How long did they have before the beasts came to get them?
    A particularly loud scream ripped Abraham from thought. The yelling he'd heard before spilled out into the hallway. Maybe he'd been mistaken. Maybe the people hadn't been reacting to what they'd seen outside, but something within .  
    Snarls confirmed his worst fears. Abraham didn't need to see through the door to know the creatures were in the hallway.
    The third floor had been overrun.

PART TWO: THE ONSLAUGHT

Chapter Ten

    Tom tore his attention away from the headless creature he'd killed in the cafeteria.  
    Silas.
    The little boy's name hit Tom like a blow to the stomach. He veered across the room, the creature's blood dripping off him like evidence. Having killed one creature, he vowed to kill as many as he had to until he reached the boy. He clutched the axe.
    They might be able to heal, but not if you cut off their limbs…
    At least he knew he it was possible to kill them without silver.
    Tom fled the eating area and entered the main room with the salad bar. Dim lights crackled above him. Soon, he was peering into the corridor, searching for Silas. He looked left and right, vowing not to let one of the beasts surprise him.
    Satisfied the hallway was empty, he crept into it, backtracking to the door into which Silas had ducked. The door was open.  
    "Silas?"  
    A cold fear took root in Tom's stomach as he saw the gaping threshold. Where had the boy gone? He swallowed as he peered through the opening, searching for evidence of Silas's occupancy. The room was dark and cold, laced with the sterile odor of hospital cleaning supplies. It was a janitor's closet. Brooms and mops hung against the wall. Several empty buckets were stacked in the corner.
    Tom's pulse thudded frantically behind his ears.
    He called Silas's name again, hoping the boy was in hiding. The lack of an answer sent Tom's thoughts spinning in numerous directions, none of them good. If another creature had been down here…
    But he hadn't heard screams. He let that thought comfort him as he surveyed the janitor's closet.  
    Spotting nothing else he could use—at least, nothing better than an axe—Tom reentered the hallway. He scoured the doors, looking for an open doorway. The floor was a sticky mess of footprints, but it was impossible to discern whose. The hallway reeked of blood, musk, and remains, adding to the stench on his clothing and hands.  
    He called out again. "Silas?"  
    No answer.
    And then he heard something. A moan.
    The noise made him bristle. Tom increased his pace, heading toward it, his stomach tangled in knots. He followed the trail of sound until it culminated in a large room. Ducking inside, he smelled fabric softener and laundry